Improved cleaning is a constant aim for detergent manufacturers. In spite of the use of many effective surfactants and polymers, and combinations thereof, many surfactant-based products still do not achieve complete cleaning, of soiled objects especially when used at low water temperatures.
Fabric, especially clothing, can become soiled with a variety of foreign substances ranging from hydrophobic stains (grease, oil) to hydrophilic stains (clay). The level of cleaning which is necessary to remove these foreign substances depends to a large degree upon the amount of stain present and the degree to which the foreign substance has contacted the fabric fibers. For example, grass stains usually involve direct abrasive contact with vegetative matter thereby producing highly penetrating stains. Many cleaning formulations use combinations of enzymes to aid in the peptization and removal of these stains. Alternatively, clay soil stains, although in some instances contacting the fabric fibers with less force, nevertheless provide a different type of soil removal problem due to the high degree of charge associated with the clay itself. This high surface charge density resists any appreciable peptization and dispersal of the clay by conventional surfactants and enzymes. For these soils, peptizing polymers and builders aid in the removal of the soils. Finally, hydrophobic stains, such as greases and oils, usually involve another soil removal problem since technologies that remove grass stains and outdoor soil stains (clay) do not effectively aid in grease removal. For these hydrophobic stains, a surfactant or combination of surfactants is generally preferred for removal.
In addition to soil removal, for effective cleaning it is also important that the soil or staining material, once removed from the surface does not re-deposit onto the surface during the wash treatment process. That is, once the soil or staining material is removed from the surface, the cleaning product must prevent the soil or staining material from redepositing onto the clean surface, for example, during the wash or rinse phase, and instead be removed from the wash process.
For these reasons, an effective cleaning formulation is typically comprised of many technologies that aid in removal of a variety of soils. Unfortunately, due to cost and formulation constraints, it is rare to find a cleaning formulation that effectively incorporates each of the above cleaning technologies to completely remove all of the target soils and stains on fabrics or textiles and other substrates or surfaces and concurrently prevent redeposition of the soil or staining material onto the substrate or surface during the wash process.
Other detergent products, such as, for example, hard surface cleaners, such as dish washing detergents ad household detergents, and those used in the health, beauty, and personal care area, including shampoos and soaps, may also benefit from products having improved cleaning properties along with improved anti-redeposition character.
There is a long felt need in the art for cleaning compositions that contain improved materials, such as dispersant polymers, that can effectively disperse and prevent redeposition of many types of both hydrophilic and hydrophobic soils and staining materials onto a fabric, hard surfaces and other soiled surfaces or substrate after the soil or staining material has been removed from the surface. In addition, as the effectiveness of the dispersant polymer increases there is less of a burden on the other cleaning technologies so that one could formulate using less of these materials, use more cost effective materials and/or leverage improved cleaning to drive consumer noticeability.